Man’s dysfunction in an uncivil society

Man’s dysfunction in an uncivil society

Probably two of the biggest contributors to injury and death to people in this country are guns and automobiles. When gun violence occurs, there is often a tendency to focus on the gun rather than the person. Do we attempt to outlaw automobiles every time someone commits injury to another with a car?

Think about it. Why does someone need a Lamborghini with a 600 horsepower engine when most speed limits are 55? Could there be a tendency for these owners to have the urge to speed causing potential harm to others, like assault gun owners? Why do we need these huge, powerful engines and large SUVs and assault weapons anyway? Is it to fulfill some kind of human sociological need: physiological and safety for protection, social and ego for self-gratification, or self-actualization for living in the moment? What about it, Maslow?

Do we regulate the capacity of engines and size of automobiles, like some want to do with guns? Would you rather protect yourself with a big SUV when faced with reckless drivers and road rage, much like being faced with the lunatic with the assault weapon? Self-protection, you might say? And, what is the relationship between intentional acts of violence and unintentional accidents that will happen with both guns and automobiles in a free, capitalistic society?

What about self-serving and alternative interests? Do they ever enter into this debate? Do politicians, lawyers, organizations, media, profiteers, and civil-rights activists use the gun control issue to further their own agenda? Is money at the heart of this? And, where does God and religion fit into this?

Could the answer rely upon more attention given to the people’s dysfunctions and our uncivil society rather than the weapons of their choice? Maybe we all need to do a little soul searching.

Daniel R. Tomal

Wheaton